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5-28-2025 12:22am
Police Log: Dashboard Camera Catches a Lie, $20K Check Stolen from Mailbox, and Other Stories
Darlene Cancell
Editor
The news described in this installment of Westwood Minute's weekly Police Log article series is primarily based on selected incidents from the Westwood Police Department's daily log, and information provided by Lieutenant Michael DiLalla and police staff through written records and conversations. Occasionally, Westwood Minute may weave a few facts that it obtains from other sources into these stories
Monday, May 19th
$20K Check Stolen from Norwood Post Office Mailbox is Fraudulently Cashed
11:31 a.m. Police determined that a resident of Hemlock Drive was a victim of check washing when the resident reported receiving a letter from the Internal Revenue Service which stated he had not paid $20,000 in taxes the previous year, and that the sum was owed with interested. The resident told police he did pay, and provided a copy of the check that was mailed to the IRS. A second copy of the same check was obtained from his bank, but it contained a change in payee. Instead of payment to the IRS, the payment was made to “Jaylin Black.”
Police determined that the resident’s check to the IRS was likely stolen from the post office box which he dropped it into, outside the post office in Norwood. The resident’s check appears to have been retrieved from that mailbox, “washed,” and fraudulently cashed. The resident will use the police report to provide an explanation to the IRS.
Suspected Shoplifters Target Westwood, Dedham Locations of Five Below
4:44 p.m. Police received a report from the manager of the Five Below store on University Avenue where the manager reported that two females had grabbed clothing and walked out of the store without paying. The manger reported that just previously, the same two individuals had also shoplifted from the Five Below store in Dedham. Photos of the individuals were provided to police and detectives are investigating.
Sunday, May 18th
Drifter Leaves Behind Clothes and a Bowling Ball
8:41 a.m. Police were dispatched to Hale Education on Carby Street on the report by a ranger that a hiker had found a man sleeping near a trail. The man reportedly said he was trying to get to 82 Nahatan Street in Norwood, and police were told that he was picked up from Hale by an Uber ride. However, the ranger had found a plastic trash bag containing the man’s property that had been left behind - miscellaneous clothing and a bowling ball.
Arrest of Driver of Car with Attached Plates
4:48 p.m. Police observed a white Toyota Prius quickly turn from Canton Street onto Blue Hill Drive upon seeing their police cruiser. The Prius was damaged all along its right side, with a rusted fender piece hanging down, and a softball sized hole in the rear driver’s side window. Police ran a check on the license plate, which was associated with a blue Prius, not a white Prius. The check also revealed that the owner of the vehicle bearing that license plate had an expired and non-renewable driver’s license.
Police made a traffic stop on the East Street rotary. Police learned that the driver had a suspended license and that the stopped car did not match its registration. The driver, a man from Boston, claimed to have recently purchased the vehicle.
Police arrested him for operating a motor vehicle after license suspension, driving without insurance, driving an unregistered vehicle, and concealing identity by means of attaching plates.
Friday, May 16th
Fraudulent Credit Card Spending Alert is a Phishing Scam
7:21 p.m. A resident of Oak Street reported fraud, after multiple small purchases were made using her Apple ID information, following a suspicious phone call. The resident told police that she received a text alert, allegedly from Bank of America, stating that $389.99 had been spent at a Chipotle restaurant, and that she should contact a given phone number if that transaction was unauthorized. Upon calling the provided phone number, the resident spoke to a man with an accent who asked for her Apple identification information, which she provided. When she began to receive alerts of purchases being made using her Apple ID, she contacted police and signed up for a fraud alert service.
Juveniles Throw Food at Car
10:45 p.m. Police responded to Chipotle restaurant on University Avenue where police met with a man who complained that a group of four to eight juveniles had thrown food at his black Mercedes-Benz SUV while it was parked in front of the restaurant. He was picking up an order of food to deliver for DoorDash, and when he returned to his car, he confronted a young man who had thrown food at his car.
The complainant reportedly asked the juvenile to clean up, which was done, but not completely. The complainant reported that members of the group of juveniles taunted him, “What are you doing to do? Hit me!” and “Let’s hit his ass.”
The complainant provided police with the license plate number of a car that was driven by one of the teenagers, and police contacted its registered owner, a parent. Through questioning, the police learned the identities of the individuals in the group. The complainant did not wish to press charges but asked that a record be made of the incident.
Thursday, May 15th
Was Damaged Phone Stolen or Misplaced?
12:53 p.m. Police received a complaint from a resident of Strasser Avenue who reported damage to her cell phone. She told police that during a yoga class that morning at Life Time health and fitness center on University Avenue, that she had removed her shoes and placed her phone and earbuds inside of them. After the class, that phone was missing. Life Time later reportedly found the resident’s phone in the wash, and returned it to her, damaged, with the offer of one free month of membership. The resident is not satisfied and reportedly believes that an employee took her phone. Police are investigating.
He Says, She Says
5:03 p.m. A resident of Westwood reported that she was turning left from Washington Street onto Clapboardtree Street when a large SUV or truck, also travelling east, struck her BMW X4 M40i and yelled at her. The resident reported that the other driver followed her into the CVS parking lot, and left after finding no damage to his vehicle.
While responding to the scene at the CVS on Washington Street, a police officer spoke to a witness who provided the other vehicle’s license plate. The vehicle, a black Cadillac Escalade, and its driver were identified.
The other driver was a Watertown resident. He told police that he was stopped at the traffic light on Clapboardtree Street at the Washington Street intersection when he observed the complainant inching out of a driveway a slow pace, while trying to enter his lane. He reported hearing a crunch as her car contacted his, and that she yelled expletives, and that they both drove to CVS.
No citations were issued in this case of conflicting accounts.
Identity Theft for Electric Service
5:33 p.m. A resident of Summer Street reported a case of identity theft after being contacted by a collections agency an hour earlier about an unpaid bill. The unpaid bill was an electric account with a Rhode Island utility which had been opened in 2023 and had an overdue balance of over $500. The resident reported that he had ties to Rhode Island through a rental property that he previously had owned, but had sold, prior to the electric account being opened. Police advised the resident to report the fraud to credit reporting bureaus.
Tuesday, May 13th
Fraudster Sends Delivery to a Hotel for Pickup
12:19 p.m. A family residing on Willard Circle reported that fraudulent purchases were made on their credit cards: $230 at Lacoste, $240 at Kohl’s, and $296 at the Apple store. Some of the transactions were able to be cancelled; however, the Apple purchase was out for delivery to the Marriot Courtyard hotel and expected to be received on May 14.
Police inquired at the hotel on May 14th, and were informed that the package had not been picked up. A hotel manager informed police that a male caller had inquired about the package and asked that it be shipped to a different address with a shipping label that he would send.
Detectives investigated but were met with a dead end in identifying and locating the caller.
Dashboard Camera Catches a Lie
10:20 p.m. A couple from Dedham were travelling in a Mazda CX-5, south on Washington Street behind a Toyota Highlander, and followed it into the parking lot of Salon Cabelo.
The Highlander abruptly stopped and reversed, striking the Mazda behind it. The driver of the lead vehicle, a man with dark hair, pulled over, looked at his car, and left the scene.
The couple in the trailing vehicle that was struck provided dashcam video footage to police of the incident. Through it, police were able to identify the other vehicle and driver of the hit-and-run.
Police contacted the man, a resident of Roslindale, who confirmed with police that he had been involved in a car accident but reportedly told them that his car was parked when another vehicle ran into him.
Because the dashcam video did not support the man’s account, police issued him a citation for leaving the scene of an accident involving property damage.
Thanks to Lieutenant Michael DiLalla and the Westwood Police Department for contributing information for this Westwood Minute article.
Updated 5/28/2025 at 10:21 p.m. Incorrect references to "Canton Terrace" and "Blue Hills Avenue" have been corrected to state "Canton Street" and "Blue Hill Drive," respectively, in the story titled, "Arrest of Driver of Car with Attached Plates." Additional corrections have been made for clarity and to correct typographical errors.
